Revell - Fine Molds - paragrafix 1/48 Tie fighter build

[Dozer]

Hey guys... with so many bandai miniatures i wanted to show something i have been working on for a while in a bigger scale.



the objective is to add some extra detail & lights in the cockpit and make it more consistent & solid, the interior as it comes from the box is quite open with a lot of gaps to fill.

















I hope you find it interesting, It's my first post in the forum so i'f i'm doing something wrong let me know.

 

[Dozer]

Adding some updates, the objective is not to make an screen accurated model, i just want to add some detail following production photos and similar.

I made the polygonal side walls thinner, so when i put leds in the interior, light will come easier through the plastic, and will be blocked only by the paragrafix pannels which are on top.

I also added some structures to the wall borders so they fit perfectly on the interior closing any open gap.





Adding some extra detail to the front panel.





And adding also some detail to the top, so it looks more solid too from above, also , i probably will leave the hatch open , i'm thinking something about how to display the model

 

[STEVE THE SWEDE]

You're doing a great job with that cockpit! Having fiddled with the same kit (although Fine Molds release) myself on and off for the past 6 years I can relate to the amount of work that you're putting in! I'm sure it's gonna look awesome ones completed! Oh, and welcome to the board!

Cheers,
Steve.

 

[Dozer]

You're doing a great job with that cockpit! Having fiddled with the same kit (although Fine Molds release) myself on and off for the past 6 years I can relate to the amount of work that you're putting in! I'm sure it's gonna look awesome ones completed! Oh, and welcome to the board!

Cheers,
Steve.

yes, i saw in your own thread that you have been on this model for some years now, what is a shame because it was looking really good, with your permit i'm going to copy some ideas

the most annoying thing with this model is how lazy they were about the interior, but the scale allows me to do some extra work, that's why i'm not fan of 1/72 , they are more limited to the exterior looking, i hope bandai realizes some day they are some really hardcore model makers out there and starts to work in bigger scales.

Thanks for your words and for your welcome.

Cheers

 

[Dozer]

Putting everything together and adding some more detail











and primmed with the Vallejo Primmer, is the first time i use this stuff, normally i use the tamiya spray Cans, but where i´m working / living now i don´t have too much space and ventilation so i prefer to use my airbrush, that way i can spray with more control.







The Vallejo Primmer worked well for this , but i would never use it on the hull, is not too hard to remove, and it's not sandable at all, what i think is not a good quality for a primmer,

 

[STEVE THE SWEDE]

Now that looks killer! Luckily for me I'm copying the studio model cockpit on my build so I don't have to worry about competing with yours!

Cheers,
Steve.

 

[Fett_Ish]

wow. Clean and intricate work, its going to be very nice.

 

[Rats]

Lovely detailing on the cockpit. Can't wait to see the lighting. :cool

 

[Dozer]

Thank You guys, i´m glad you find this build interesting.

here go some updates, ...playing with color.

 

[STEVE THE SWEDE]

Awesome!

Good color choices! When it's all sealed up those lighter greys will register really nice! All to often you see dark grey TIE cockpits.

Cheers,
Steve.

 

[Dozer]

Awesome!

Good color choices! When it's all sealed up those lighter greys will register really nice! All to often you see dark grey TIE cockpits.

Cheers,
Steve.

that´s what i think too, but i´m always suprise how black cockpits look when you see shots from inside the cockpit in the movies, i guess all depends in how you interpret it, and if you take more care of the prop models or the real scale cockpits built for filming actors inside.

here there go some updates, i´m going to use this stuff to prime this fotoetched panels,i made a try with the acrylic stuff from Vallejo and the adhesion was so poor on metal that i could remove it just with some tape





it needs a bit more of time to clean the airbrush, and to take care of the vapours,,, but the result is much more better.







And this is how everything looks after putting all together, i made some mistakes when priming with the airbrush, basically sprayed too much in thick layers instead of make thin layers and let them dry for a couple of minutes, that is the reason the finish doesn't look so smooth, but once it's inside the cockpit and sealed i think it will be good.
You can see how light goes through the plastic and is blocked by the metal panels, i made a coat of clear red over the plastic parts to make light really red colored, but i´m also planning to use red smd leds behind the panels.







I was doubting between include the pilot, or not, but i finally included, and i´m happy with the decision

 

[Tanolucas]

What a job !!! .. this is a piece of art. Congratulations, I follow the topic waiting for more progress

 

[Dozer]

Thanks for following Tano

Time to put some light to the thing, i´m going to use a small white smd led, for the console, and four red smd leds for the lateral panels, that way i can distribute a bit better the light instead of using just a couple of leds in each side.

Here is the smd for the console, i bought some of these already wired.



I´m going to put it inside this little piece i made with different compartments , i put small pieces of clear plastic in each compartmet and i painted them with different clear colors , this is where the fiber optics will be attached.





And this goes to the small hole under the pilot chair.





And these are the red smd leds glued to the walls





almost ready to put all together and glue the two pieces of the hull... excited. will show how light works when that part is done.

 

[sithman66]

Looks really great!

I hope you're still able to see some of your amazing work when it's zipped up!
I lit my interceptor with three leds and you really can't even see the paint job on the pilot!
and your interior is FAR superior to what I did!

Fantastic interior!

 

[Dozer]

Looks really great!

I hope you're still able to see some of your amazing work when it's zipped up!
I lit my interceptor with three leds and you really can't even see the paint job on the pilot!
and your interior is FAR superior to what I did!

Fantastic interior!

i'm going to leave the cockpit upper hatch open, i have something in mind about how to display the model.
However i put in place the clear plastic and the frontal frame piece to see how it looks and certainly i didn't see a thing from inside, the clear piece is too thick and distorts too much the interior.

So i have two solutions,

One:, not to put the clear plastic piece and leave jsut the frame, that way you can see the interior very clear, like the original studio models were made, but i don't like that solution too much, i'm not a purist and i'm not making an scaled studio model, i always think in my models as a representation of what is supposed to exist inside the movie's world, that's the same reason i don't like when i see models not weathered at all just because the original models were painted plain... they look good in the movies due to the lighting, filming and movement, but when you see the original model ... it looks rough to me. Of course there is the other side when people over weather their models, specially imperial ones.

TWO: cut plastic clear sheet, very thin in pieces, to glue them behind the frontal frame, i made a test and looks much better than the gross piece that comes with the kit.

Anyways... for me there is always fun in doing this kind of work in the models, specially the cockpits, even if at the end... you always see the model at some distance over a shelf, for me doing this extra work it is part of the fun and what makes a model special.

thanks for watching

 

[sithman66]

O......M.......G!! My twin brother I have finally found you!!:lol

THAT is exectly how I try to approach SW models as well!

I don't like the windowless option either BUT went that way with my interceptor in the hopes of seeing my interior but it didn't work out that way!
on the next one I think I will add more lighting and try not to get it too unrealistically bright!

I hear a guy I think on this sight actually cuts microscope cover glass for his windows! I don't know how hard it would be but it would sure be clear and never haze or turn yellow!


Looking forward to what you come up with!

i'm going to leave the cockpit upper hatch open, i have something in mind about how to display the model.
However i put in place the clear plastic and the frontal frame piece to see how it looks and certainly i didn't see a thing from inside, the clear piece is too thick and distorts too much the interior.

So i have two solutions,

One:, not to put the clear plastic piece that way you can see the interior very clear, like the original studio models were made, but i don't like that solution too much, i'm not a purist and i'm not making an scaled studio model, i always think in my models as a representation of what is supposed to exist inside the movie's world, that's the same reason i don't like when i see models not weathered at all just because the original models were painted plain... they look good in the movies due to the lighting and movement, but when you see the original model ... it looks rough to me. Of course there is the other side when people over weather their models, specially imperial ones.

TWO: cut plastic clear sheet, very thin in pieces, to glue them behind the frontal frame, i made a test and looks much better than the gross piece that comes with the kit.

Anyways... for me there is always fun part in doing this kind of work in the models, specially the cockpits, even if at the end... you always see the model at some distance over a shelf, for me doing this extra work it is part of the fun and what makes a model special.

thanks for watching

 

[Dozer]

haha, twin brother... nice to meet you ,

since it's an interceptor, i guess you are talking about a bandai 1/72

This is 1/48, slightly bigger, what makes more sense to make a bit of work on the interior, have not seen any bandai in person but they have to be pretty small.

 

[sithman66]

yup!

that's the one!

you're right! they are pretty small and that doesn't make it easy to see the interior!

thankfully I am not smart enough to give up and will try again with the standard TIE!

maybe I should snag a 48th scale though?...................

I think I saw one at the LHS......

 

[Dozer]

if you go for it go also for the paragrafix set... it is worth it.

 

[sithman66]

it does look worth it!

I already have a 48th scale x-wing so I'm thinking I just gotta have at least one TIE to go with it!